Music / klassiske symfonier

Symphony no. 5


Reviews (18)


Klassik heute

d. 21. Aug. 2020

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Thomas Schulz (f. 1960)

d. 21. Aug. 2020

"Klassik Heute Empfehlung: Michael Collins ist Musikfreunden seit langer Zeit vor allem als hervorragender Klarinettist bekannt ... Einen zusätzlichen Dirigenten brauchte es für die Aufnahme nicht, denn Collins ist seit geraumer Zeit auch dirigentisch tätig ... Die aktuelle Einspielung punktet jedoch - ausser mit einem wunderbar transparenten und warm tönenden Klangbild - mit einer noch grösseren gestalterischen Souveränität. Besser, engagierter und gleichzeitig inniger kann man dieses vorwiegend lyrische, für die zurückhaltende kompositorische Identität Finzis so typische Werk nicht spielen. Der eigentliche Clou der SACD ist jedoch die Sinfonie Nr. 5 von Ralph Vaughan Williams ... Collins gelingt es hier tatsächlich, stärker zum Kern ... als viele seiner Dirigenten-Kollegen vor ihm".


MusicWeb international

2020 November

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John Quinn (musikanmelder)

2020 November

"The fourth instalment of Martyn Brabbins' Vaughan Williams symphony cycle brings us to the serene Fifth. He follows the trend he has set in his previous recordings in this series of coupling the symphonies with unfamiliar works by VW, often in first recordings ... The compelling reason for buying this CD, however, is the performance of the Fifth Symphony. It's a fine one; indeed, I think it may be the highlight to date of Martyn Brabbins' cycle".


MusicWeb international

2020 August

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Robert Cummings (musikanmelder)

2020 August

"Recommended: The Vaughan Williams Symphony No. 5 is one of the great "Fifths" from the 20th century ... I was not expecting the performance on this BIS SACD to capture the soul of this work so well, but it does and may well outdo the competition altogether. The seemingly unlikely hero is Michael Collins, a clarinetist who also has been doing much conducting for a decade or more now ... He draws splendid and very spirited playing here from the Philharmonia Orchestra and interprets the score with a fine sense for its lyrical beauty, passionate sweep, and vivid colors. Frankly, I would like to hear more Vaughan Williams from him, perhaps the Sixth? ... A most rewarding disc for the admirers of Vaughan Williams and Finzi".


MusicWeb international

2018 May

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William Hedley

2018 May

"Overall this is a masterly performance from Manze and the players of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic ... Compared to the first two instalments of Manze's Vaughan Williams cycle, parts of this one made me a little disappointed. Those who collect the series can hardly go wrong, however, even if other, individual performances are more satisfying. Onyx's production values are always high and this release lives up to them".


MusicWeb international

2018 April

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John Quinn (musikanmelder)

2018 April

"This new recording of the Sixth by Andrew Manze is a fine achievement ... Fine though Manze's reading of the Sixth may be, however, his account of the serene Fifth is finer still ... It is, quite simply, one of the best recordings of the Fifth that I can recall hearing - and I've had the good fortune to hear several top-notch versions over the years ... There are two more instalments to come in this VW cycle and I'm eager to hear them. The previous issues have been excellent but this latest pair of performances, especially that of the Fifth, establishes a new peak".


The observer

d. 15. Apr. 2018

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Fiona Maddocks

d. 15. Apr. 2018

"The tugging horns and low strings which open Vaughan Williams's meditative, often wistful Symphony No 5 in D (1943) set a mood of harmonic ambiguity that never quite leaves this wartime work. Paired with the contrastingly bellicose No 6 in E minor (1948), it forms the third volume in the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra's outstanding Vaughan Williams symphonic cycle, conducted by Andrew Manze (Onyx ... Manze's feeling for structure and transparency is matched by the orchestra's glowing intensity and accuracy. This cycle is proving essential listening".


Politiken

d. 11. Nov. 2020

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Thomas Michelsen

d. 11. Nov. 2020

"Ralph Vaughan Williams er aldrig blevet verdenskendt som Beethoven og Brahms. Der går længe imellem, at hans sange og symfoniske værker spilles herhjemme. Men hans interesse i Englands musikalske fortid klinger klart igennem i det, der nok er den mest populære af Vaughan Williams' ni symfonier ... Alvor, dansende rytmer og mystik giver i løbet af fire satser plads til vidunderligt flydende træblæserstemmer og en bredde i udtrykket ... Der er et ... fascinerende tvelys over indledningens rolige hornkald, når dirigenten Martyn Brabbins leder BBC's symfoniorkester i Vaughan Williams' 5. ... Brabbins skaber intensitet og rytmisk prægnans - noget, Vaughan Williams' musik tit kan savne ... Hos Brabbins og BBC-musikerne er der intensitet i detaljen ... og han får mig suget ind i musikken".


Politiken

d. 11. Nov. 2020

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By

Thomas Michelsen

d. 11. Nov. 2020

"Ralph Vaughan Williams er aldrig blevet verdenskendt som Beethoven og Brahms. Der går længe imellem, at hans sange og symfoniske værker spilles herhjemme. Men hans interesse i Englands musikalske fortid klinger klart igennem i det, der nok er den mest populære af Vaughan Williams' ni symfonier ... Alvor, dansende rytmer og mystik giver i løbet af fire satser plads til vidunderligt flydende træblæserstemmer og en bredde i udtrykket ... Philharmonia-orkestret ... leverer en sammenhængende, overblikspræget fortolkning af Vaughan Williams' 40 minutter lange værk under ledelse af dets tidligere soloklarinettist Michael Collins, som her debuterer overbevisende som dirigent på plade. Resultatet er en smuk, pastoral indspilning, hvor alle yder deres bedste ... Collins betoner skønheden og orkestrets fremragende klang hele vejen til slutningen af den sidste sats".


BBC music magazine

2020 Christmas

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Daniel Jaffé

2020 Christmas

"Brabbins and his musicians generally give a glowing and contemplative account of the Fifth Symphony (1943), its colours well captured in producer Andrew Keener's fine recording".


Fono Forum

2020 Dezember

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Holger Arnold

2020 Dezember

"Als Klarinettist zählt Michael Collins zu den prominentesten Vertretern seines Fachs, in den letzten Jahren hat er sich auch als Dirigent einen Namen gemacht. Zu Recht, wie sich hier zeigt. In Vaughan Williams fünfter Sinfonie gelingt es ihm, die unter der scheinbar ausgeglichenen Oberfläche angesiedelten harmonischen Spannungen und Dissonanzen plastisch herauszuarbeiten und das bestens disponierte Orchester mit grossem rundem Gesamtklang aufspielen zu lassen ... In Finzis Klarinettenkonzert: ... Mit delikatester Tongebung gelingen ihm selbst heikelste Bindungen ins hohe Register. Bewundernswert, wie er zudem in den schier endlosen Melodiebögen des zweiten Satzes die Spannung hält".


BBC music magazine

2020 November

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Daniel Jaffé

2020 November

"[The Symphony is] beautifully played but not quite faithful even to the letter of Vaughan Williams's score ... Altogether, this superb performance [of the Concerto] will surely persuade those listeners generally unconvinced by Finzi that he was far more than a purveyor of pastoral nostalgia".


BBC music magazine

2018 June

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Malcolm Hayes

2018 June

"It is to Andrew Manze's credit that his blueprint-like approach to these two very different symphonies refuses to make points for point-making's sake. But in terms of memorability, nothing much happens either - a situation for which that approach has to take its share of responsibility ... with The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra strings well up to the challenge".


Opus

2013, nr. 46

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Thomas Roth

2013, nr. 46

"Dirigenten Mark Elder är ingen nykomling vad gäller Vaughan Williams ... Mitt första intryck var att han höll tillbaka för mycket, men det här är musicerande som verkligen växer, och intrycket att han håller tillbaka är ett resultat av att Elder gör det mesta av de dynamiska skillnaderna. Urfint spel av Hallé i Manchester ... Världens vackraste musik? Jajamensan!".


The gramophone

2020 December

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Andrew Achenbach

2020 December

"Editor's choice: Brabbins's Vaughan Williams symphony cycle continues to go from strength to strength with this impressively cogent, self-effacing Fifth, a reading notable for its unhurried demeanour, clarity of texture and orchestral playing of conspicuous finesse and lustre ... Indeed, there's an enviable wholeness, lofty integrity and sureness of purpose that effortlessly hold the listener ... The coupling could hardly be more intriguing ... A rather special release, this, and emphatically not to be missed".


The gramophone

2020 October

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Mark Pullinger

2020 October

"Collins's ripe tone is very much undiminished and he shapes Finzi's winding melodies as affectionately as ever ... There's a feeling of pastoral ease without ever getting stuck in a 'cow staring over the fence' rut, encouraging such impassioned string-playing that the movement's emotional climax registers strongly ... Collins has a natural feel for [the symphony's] structure and draws glowing playing from the Philharmonia ... I'd be keen to hear more from Collins the conductor, as long as there are no plans to abandon the clarinet just yet, please".


The gramophone

2018 April

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Jeremy Dibble

2018 April

"Editor's choice: The clarity of the orchestral sound, especially in the pointillistic orchestration of the Fifth, is compelling (the Scherzo in particular, whose tempo Manze gives an extra injection of adrenalin) ... [The Scherzo of the Sixth] this is virtuoso stuff, splendidly handled by conductor and orchestra ... Any lover of Vaughan Williams as a symphonist will find this recording exceptionally rewarding".


BBC music magazine

2013 May

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Malcolm Hayes

2013 May

"This studio recording maybe just misses the strong characterisation that makes André Previn's recording with the London Symphony orchestra so remarkable ... It's excellent nonetheless".


The gramophone

2013 May

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Rob Cowan (f. 1948)

2013 May

"Vurdering: Gramophone choice" - "Elder's sense of atmosphere and specific locality win out ... The Scherzo shows the Hallé winds and brass to excellent effect and I was warmed by Elder's well-aimed use of string portamentos in the Cavatina ... I would recommend it unreservedly".